Heavy Rain
by Nakao Inugami
Summary: Shippou finds himself seemingly abandoned and dying after a climactic battle in a provincial village. In his most desperate hour he finds an unlikely savior in a certain miko.


Hello all, this is my first Inuyasha story and my first fan fiction in a very very long time so you'll have to forgive the infantile mistakes I make. My favorite IY character is and always will be Kikyou, and so she'll be a prominent figure in this and most all stories I will write in the Inuverse. (Awesome word huh? ^^; )

Disclaimers and Copyright crap: I do not own any rights to Inuyasha or the characters therein. They belong to the lovely Rumiko Takahashi and whatever company subsidiaries have a stake in it.

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Chapter One

Rain fell heavily upon ravished earth, cloaking the burning remains of the village in a blanket of steam. Scorched skeletons of buildings hissed in protest as water made contact with the still glowing surfaces, causing heavy serpentine spirals of smoke to swirl around a tiny figure stirring in the debris of a ruined hut. The stench of death and wet, smouldering wood stung his nostrils as his eyes blinked open. "H-h…hahhn…" He tried to will words into his throat, but all he could muster was quick, pained gasps. His chest heaved against the wet ground, labored and ragged; he felt like every bone, every muscle in his body was torn asunder. The shock, which had protected the child from feeling the full force of his wounds was finally beginning to ebb away, giving into pain that was mind numbing. He keened pitifully, willing his legs to move, but instead being met with another wave of pain that sent tears flooding into his eyes.

'Where am I… Wh-where is everyone…?' He thought, desperately trying to recall the circumstances that brought him here. But all he could glance from his memories were flashes of light, screaming… Oh the screams were horrid, bone chilling… But he remembered a set of soft blue-gray eyes looking urgently at him, as if telling him to…

'Run away! Run Away Shippou! Ship-' Fire consumed his vision and he recalled a dark, feminine silhouette disappearing into the waves of heat that surrounded them as he clawed desperately for her. 'Ka… KAGOME!' His vision faded to black soon afterwards. 'K… Kagome… Where are you… Why didn't you…' Tears of confusion soon joined tears of physical agony.

Just as sobs began to overtake the child a loud crack sounded above him, causing his stomach to leap into his throat as the still burning remainder of the hut's roof disintegrated to the floor. Debris scattered down around him and rainwater fell mercilessly upon his scalded flesh, sending him crashing back to the reality of his situation as the searing pain blurred his vision with spots of white light. 'Why did they leave me here…' He thought pitifully as the pain began to fade once more, causing a dull haze to settle over his mind. '… Didn't they… Weren't they… I'm going to die…' He licked his cracked, dry lips, distantly thankful that he didn't seem to have broken any bones on his face. 'They… left me here to die…'

The pain of the betrayal rivaled that of his broken body and his face contorted into a grotesque expression of unequaled suffering and grief. Sobs wracked his body as he dredged his fingers into the mire beneath him willing the earth to give him easy purchase as he attempted to claw his way out of the debris. The kit knew that any hope of survival lied in whether he would be able to find shelter. Demons, even minor ones such as he, had an uncanny ability to heal quickly, but that was only if other demons didn't find him first. And with fire and death hanging over this village like a curse, it wouldn't be long before they'd be here. Adrenaline surged into his veins at that point and he grit his teeth as his instincts for self-preservation strengthened his resolve to get out of this god-forsaken place. But it hurt... Every inch he moved forward he paid dearly for, and soon enough his strength fled him as he finally crawled out of the ruined building and into the muck that was once the main thoroughfare for the village.

'I… Can't… Move…' He thought dismally, his outer extremities feeling like they were lit afire. 'I guess this really is it then… Just like this…' At least when his father died, he died with a certain amount of nobility, for a cause… But him- No, he would die like an animal in the mud. With that dismal thought he laid his head down; he was so tired. The oblivion of sleep was a welcome place to escape to; with any luck, he would still be asleep when his brethren came to ravage his tiny body. Just as the kitsune's eyelids began to flutter closed, an ethereal glow floated over him, but just as quickly as it came, it disappeared, and he soon heard the sounds of soft footsteps in the mud. 'Great… I guess I'm not that lucky…' He thought emptily, letting his body go limp as hopelessness flooded his being. But no sooner than he finished this thought than the stranger was upon him and he chanced a look upwards to see what kind of monstrosity was about to feast upon his flesh. His breath caught painfully in his chest and his ears lowered in fear.

The first things he registered were her rain soaked robes, a ghost white haori and crimson hakama, and her eyes, a clear gray tinged with light blue, like the clouds that swirled in the sky during a rain shower. They were comfortingly familiar but at the same time terrifying as he took in the rest of her countenance. Her rain-slicked hair, loosely pinned together behind her back and falling over her shoulders in a waterfall of ebony, framed her face with random strands clinging to her pale, slightly flushed cheeks. The woman's features were elegant and soft, but belied by an expression that was cold and unfathomable. Without looking at him she reached out a hand and a serpentine demon floated towards her and coiled around her arm, depositing a glowing blue orb in front of her that immediately faded into her chest. Color soon rushed into her porcelain skin soon after; Shippou recoiled inwardly at the unnatural sight, fear seizing his heart in a vice.

"Ki…K…" He tried to gasp out her name, but his broken ribs held hostage his breath.

As her demons took their leave of her to search the village for the dead souls that had led them there she inclined her head to down upon the wounded kitsune. An indecipherable emotion flitted over her eyes, and her expression seemed to soften. "You… You look familiar child…" She said, her voice somber, but gentle and carrying with it a soothing quality that mesmerized the young kit. But he quickly regained his senses, the emotions of fear and hatred flooding back to him in waves. He scowled at her, and if he had had the strength to he would have spat at her feet. 'This is the woman that tried to kill his friends! The woman that stole Inuyasha's affections towards Ka…' At that he stopped and became listless, as the reality of their betrayal once again came upon him. Now he truly had no one in the world that cared for him, so who would care if he died? With that thought he once again closed his eyes, preparing himself for a death blow that was inevitable.

But instead of pain, he felt a comforting hand smooth over his tangled hair. He looked up with great surprise into a feminine face that was touched with concern kneeling over him. A few tears slid down his cheeks and he attempted desperately to back away from her touch, resulting in his wounds once again loudly making themselves known. He whimpered brokenly and cried, in too much pain to even coil himself up in a ball. "Shh… Don't worry little one, I won't hurt you… You're very badly hurt…" She whispered, her hand brushing muddied strands of russet hair away from his frightened blue eyes. As she attempted to comfort the boy she glanced over his wounds and in a moment looked to have decided upon something.

She slowly rose to her feet and walked away from him, for which he was grateful. Maybe she would decide to leave him alone instead of killing him. He didn't believe for a moment that she really wanted to help him… She was a monster, of the worst kind, with not a trace of humanity left in her. The miko was a lifeless doll, incapable of human emotion, driven only by vengeance. Secure in these thoughts, the kitsune once again settled back into the business of dying.

After what seemed like ages, he once again heard footsteps, but this time they were accompanied by a wet scraping sound. Looking up he saw Kikyou once more, strips of fabric in hand, pulling along with her what seemed to be a makeshift litter made of materials she must have had found in the remains of the village. Setting it down nearby, she made her way over to him and carefully began to gather the child into her arms. He hissed in protest as broken bones shifted painfully as she moved him onto the litter. Kikyou's eyes looked down at him with mild apology written within their normally enigmatic depths. "We'll find shelter soon…" She said softly, tying him down as gently, but securely as she could to the litter with the sodden strips of fabric. As soon as the task was done, he bit his lower lip as she undid her haori, sliding it off of her slender porcelain arms and placing it over the child's cold and shivering body. It was still wet, but at the very least it would help protect him from the wind.

His confusion gave way to fatigue as he felt his head throb warmly, sleep finally seeming to win the battle over his body. '… What a strange way to die…' He thought to himself as his vision began to fade to black.


End file.
